Latest news with #JDPower
The Drive
18 hours ago
- Automotive
- The Drive
A Shocking Amount of People Say Car Cupholders Are ‘Difficult to Use'
The consumer insight researchers at J.D. Power and Associates run an annual Initial Quality Survey (IQS) on new car buyers. It yields a comparative list of how satisfied people are with new cars from all of our market's major brands. It also exposes features and trends that buyers like and don't. And this year, one of the biggest jumps in car-owner complaints was about cupholders. J.D. Power's IQS press release lays it out like this: 'While it seemed like manufacturers had cupholders figured out, given that owners are now bringing more reusable containers into their vehicles, manufacturers are struggling to keep up with being able to accommodate all the different shapes and sizes that are increasingly available. Consequently, owners are again citing more problems in this area, with the expectation that their vehicle should be able to hold different sizes of containers.' I got some more context for us on that from Frank Hanley, J.D. Power's Senior Director, Auto Benchmarking. 'When looking at the top 10 problems for the [industry] 'cupholders – difficult to use' went from being the [seventh] most problematic issue for the vehicle to the [third] most reported this year,' he explained over email. Third-most-problematic sounds high, no? Elaborating, Hanley added [sic]: 'In the survey we ask owners about 227 specific areas where they can report issues with their vehicles across 10 categories. Owners also have the ability to write in any problems that are not listed. Cup holders this year was the 3rd most reported of those 227 items.' 'Everything a customer does mark a problem we ask additional follow up questions that pertain to the issue including having them write in a comment. When reading these comments it was clear that more customers are complaining about the cup holders not being able to hold the larger cup sizes being brought into the vehicles well like Yetis and Stanley mugs. The larger cups are also intruding on access to other areas in the center tunnel like storage spaces and controls in the center stack depending on the positioning of the cup holders.' As a lover of both old cars and giant coffee cups, I feel this pain deeply. Driving my 20-year-old manual-shift BMW with a drink in the center console is equally hilarious and annoying. But I'm a little surprised people are having this issue with new cars—a lot of the press loaners I'm in seem to accommodate cups well enough. Or, maybe, is it possible that I just don't have a big enough coffee cup? It's funny to think of product planners at car companies trying to track the next trend in travel mugs as they spec out center console cupholder designs. I remember talking to somebody at a German automaker years ago, with a question along the lines of 'why aren't the cupholders bigger,' and his frustration at the concept of cupholders at all was not well hidden. He said something like, 'Why do you need to drink while you drive? Just stop at a cafe.' Trust, if I could spend my days sipping cappuccinos at roadside rest stops in Europe, that's exactly where I'd be writing this from right now. But here in America, I have to drive 100 miles through the mud, uphill both ways, just to get my groceries. And I'm not about to sit anywhere for that long without a little coffee to suck on, goshdang it. Jokes aside, I very much do like to sip a beverage while cruising, and a good cupholder does go a long way in interior ergonomics. So while it does sound silly that so many people would complain about something as trivial as beverage storage, I kind of get it. And I guess it's good news that one of America's biggest issues with their new cars could be solved by simply switching to a smaller cup? As for automakers trying to keep up with cup trends, here's a free pitch: Cupholder adapters.
The Drive
a day ago
- Automotive
- The Drive
Cars Are Caught in an Endless Cycle of Bigger Screens Nobody Really Likes
The latest car news, reviews, and features. J.D. Power released the results of its 2025 Initial Quality Study on Thursday, and—surprise, surprise—the number one reported problem area industry-wide is infotainment. While the systems themselves are becoming more visually impressive and they're better-integrated into the overall design of most vehicles than early attempts, customers complain more about these systems than they do anything else in their brand-new cars. In short, customers love the way these big screens look, but virtually all of them are a pain to operate. So why the heck does every new car introduction come with a bigger, more feature-bloated touchscreen? Well, it's complicated. But as usual, it all comes down to money. The 'why' makes more sense if you consider the broader industry push to re-brand the traditional ( spits ) infotainment system as an all-in-one control center. Functions that were once tied to physical controls on the dash and center console have been steadily migrating into this space. Headlight toggles, home garage door controls, and even glove box releases are now making their way into vehicular touchscreen interfaces, in many instances joining basic audio and climate controls that were moved there years ago. Automakers sell it as a way to free up space on the dash and center console. For what? So far, the answer has mostly been 'more screens.' One might call that a lateral move. With all the extra room, you'd think they'd be able to keep up with America's fancy cup obsession. And given the positive feedback automakers have received for the more-minimalist interior designs that often result, the effort hasn't entirely been for naught. Mercedes-Benz Hyperscreen Plus, centralized touchscreen control systems save automakers money, especially when implemented in cars with a broad selection of available doodads. While software development isn't free, it's far more forgiving than designing, prototyping, testing, sourcing and maintaining a supply of physical control components. An infotainment module may cost more than a switch, but you'd be surprised how quickly that math changes when one switch becomes five—or fifty. But in designing for this internal convenience, automakers are taking a gamble that their buyers will learn to live with the resulting compromises. What's often left unsaid is the fact that we're increasingly running the risk that a failed infotainment system could effectively 'brick' a car completely. And eliminating those physical controls doesn't eliminate the need for them, forcing automakers to add new infotainment menus, tiles, and pages—and in some cases, entirely new screens—that its customers must then navigate. This clutter annoys critics and customers alike. 'Owners find these things to be overly complicated and too distracting to use while driving,' said J.D. Power's Frank Hanley, senior director of auto benchmarking. 'By retaining dedicated physical controls for some of these interactions, automakers can alleviate pain points and simplify the overall customer experience.' Tesla's rear seat interface But even as some automakers pledge to bring buttons back, there's no reason to expect they will come at the expense of established display real estate. Even if customers are frustrated by the experience offered by their large displays, they still enjoy looking at them, and as those screens get bigger and bigger and take over space that was once reserved for other features, those features will have to go somewhere. Right? With each generation, more features are incorporated into the screen. To avoid excessive menus, the screens get bigger to accommodate those new functions. It's an endless cycle fueled equally by feature bloat and the desire to cut potentially redundant physical components—which equate to finding ways to charge more money for less car. And then there's the unspoken financial opportunity presented by a more robust digital infrastructure. Unless you've been living under a rock your entire life, you know by now that a screen is always at risk of becoming a new avenue by which somebody can sell you something. New features? Maintenance plans? Subscription services? Those are all tough to sell through a button. Just ask GM. So as you read the next car reveal, and you peruse the interior section to see what inconveniences await its new buyers, remember that a bigger screen does three things: it sells new cars to wide-eyed customers, saves the automaker a ton of money on components, and it offers the tantalizing possibility of future revenue streams. Nope, these screens aren't going anywhere . Do you also like to yell at clouds? Commiserate with the author at byron@
The Drive
a day ago
- Automotive
- The Drive
A Shocking Amount of People Say Car Cupholders Are 'Difficult to Use'
The latest car news, reviews, and features. The consumer insight researchers at J.D. Power and Associates run an annual Initial Quality Survey (IQS) on new car buyers. It yields a comparative list of how satisfied people are with new cars from all of our market's major brands. It also exposes features and trends that buyers like and don't. And this year, one of the biggest jumps in car-owner complaints was about cupholders. J.D. Power's IQS press release lays it out like this: 'While it seemed like manufacturers had cupholders figured out, given that owners are now bringing more reusable containers into their vehicles, manufacturers are struggling to keep up with being able to accommodate all the different shapes and sizes that are increasingly available. Consequently, owners are again citing more problems in this area, with the expectation that their vehicle should be able to hold different sizes of containers.' I got some more context for us on that from Frank Hanley, J.D. Power's Senior Director, Auto Benchmarking. 'When looking at the top 10 problems for the [industry] 'cupholders – difficult to use' went from being the [seventh] most problematic issue for the vehicle to the [third] most reported this year,' he explained over email. Third-most-problematic sounds high, no? Climate-controlled cupholders seemed neat when we started seeing them years ago, but now that everybody's coffee cup is insulated, the idea is kind of redundant. Adobe Elaborating, Hanley added [sic]: 'In the survey we ask owners about 227 specific areas where they can report issues with their vehicles across 10 categories. Owners also have the ability to write in any problems that are not listed. Cup holders this year was the 3rd most reported of those 227 items.' 'Everything a customer does mark a problem we ask additional follow up questions that pertain to the issue including having them write in a comment. When reading these comments it was clear that more customers are complaining about the cup holders not being able to hold the larger cup sizes being brought into the vehicles well like Yetis and Stanley mugs. The larger cups are also intruding on access to other areas in the center tunnel like storage spaces and controls in the center stack depending on the positioning of the cup holders.' As a lover of both old cars and giant coffee cups, I feel this pain deeply. Driving my 20-year-old manual-shift BMW with a drink in the center console is equally hilarious and annoying. But I'm a little surprised people are having this issue with new cars—a lot of the press loaners I'm in seem to accommodate cups well enough. Or, maybe, is it possible that I just don't have a big enough coffee cup? It's funny to think of product planners at car companies trying to track the next trend in travel mugs as they spec out center console cupholder designs. I remember talking to somebody at a German automaker years ago, with a question along the lines of 'why aren't the cupholders bigger,' and his frustration at the concept of cupholders at all was not well hidden. He said something like, 'Why do you need to drink while you drive? Just stop at a cafe.' Trust, if I could spend my days sipping cappuccinos at roadside rest stops in Europe, that's exactly where I'd be writing this from right now. But here in America, I have to drive 100 miles through the mud, uphill both ways, just to get my groceries. And I'm not about to sit anywhere for that long without a little coffee to suck on, goshdang it. Jokes aside, I very much do like to sip a beverage while cruising, and a good cupholder does go a long way in interior ergonomics. So while it does sound silly that so many people would complain about something as trivial as beverage storage, I kind of get it. And I guess it's good news that one of America's biggest issues with their new cars could be solved by simply switching to a smaller cup? As for automakers trying to keep up with cup trends, here's a free pitch: Cupholder adapters. Got a great or terrible cupholder situation in your car? I want to hear about it at
Auto Blog
a day ago
- Automotive
- Auto Blog
Ram Plummets In New Vehicle Quality Study
Ram's Reputation Takes a Hit in 2025 Quality Rankings J.D. Power has just released the results of its annual U.S. Initial Quality Study, which specifically assesses brands on how many problems customers experience with new cars in the first 90 days of ownership. Brands are ranked on the number of problems per 100 vehicles, with a lower score an indication of better vehicle quality. While brands like Lexus, Nissan, and Hyundai continued to perform above the industry average, what jumped out to us between this year's study and last year's one is the dramatic decline in initial quality for Ram. Let's take a closer look at the numbers. Ram Initial Quality: From 1st To One Of The Worst 2025 Ram 1500 REV In last year's Initial Quality Study, Ram led all automakers with 148 problems per 100 vehicles. It was better by a fair margin, too, since second-placed Chevrolet registered 159 problems per 100 vehicles. This result saw new Ram vehicles register fewer issues than the likes of Lexus, Honda, and Toyota. In 2025, the picture couldn't be more different. Ram is now way below the industry average with 218 problems per 100 vehicles. It's near the bottom of the list, in fact, with 23 other brands ranked above it. Source: J.D. Power The study takes into account problems consumers have with infotainment, powertrains, driver-assistance features, controls and displays, and the driving experience. Over 92,694 purchasers and lessees of new 2025 vehicles were surveyed. J.D. Power does not go into detail to explain exactly what the problems were for all brands, so Ram's dramatic fall from grace is difficult to explain. It's worth noting that the 2025 Ram 1500 underwent quite a few changes for the model year, including the controversial discontinuation of the Hemi V8 (which has since been reintroduced for 2026) and a new infotainment interface. Since the 1500 makes up the bulk of Ram sales, it's safe to assume that customers had issues with the changes applied to the 2025 pickup. Autoblog Newsletter Autoblog brings you car news; expert reviews and exciting pictures and video. Research and compare vehicles, too. Sign up or sign in with Google Facebook Microsoft Apple By signing up I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy . You may unsubscribe from email communication at anytime. Lexus And Nissan Top 2025 Study As Infotainment Woes Continue Elsewhere in the 2025 study, Lexus topped all brands with just 166 problems per hundred vehicles, followed by Nissan (169), Hyundai (173), and Jaguar (175). Bear in mind that the average number of problems for this year is 192 per 100 vehicles. Audi dropped to last position with 269 problems per 100 vehicles. Not performing much better were Volvo (258), Infiniti (242), and Volkswagen/Mazda (both on 222). Dodge, which saw a disastrous 300 problems per 100 vehicles last year, improved significantly to almost half that this year (180). Ford, which has been struggling with more recalls than any other manufacturer this year, declined from 178 problems per 100 vehicles in 2024 to 193 in 2025. Infotainment remains the most prevalent issue in this year's study. Consumers are increasingly frustrated by controls for features like garage door openers, climate controls, and the glovebox being incorporated into the touchscreen. Source: Stellantis 'Customers are having to tap and swipe through multiple screens to access key vehicle functions like climate settings and built-in garage door openers,' said Frank Hanley, senior director of auto benchmarking at J.D. Power. 'Owners find these things to be overly complicated and too distracting to use while driving.' Other key findings include the following: Premium models have more defects than mass-market vehicles Plug-in hybrids have the most issues, overtaking EVs for the first time PHEVs have 237 problems per 100 vehicles, more than EVs (212) and a lot more than pure gas models (184). Clearly, automakers are still trying to balance the complexity of PHEVs with the reliability consumers expect. About the Author Karl Furlong View Profile
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Customer satisfaction with bank, credit card digital experience is ‘plateauing'
This story was originally published on CX Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily CX Dive newsletter. Customers in the United States are marginally more satisfied with their bank and credit card digital experiences this year than last year, according to a J.D. Power report released last month, which surveyed nearly 16,800 people. 'If we look over time since when we first started doing this, there has been improvement, but we're kind of plateauing out in terms of average improvement across all of the different banks and issuers,' Sean Gelles, senior director of banking and payments intelligence at J.D. Power, told CX Dive. 'There's not a lot of breakout experiences, and the differences are narrowing between the best and the worst experiences.' Satisfaction with banking apps increased nearly 2.8% from last year to 669 on a 1,000-point scale, while satisfaction with credit card apps is up 1.5% to 659. Banks and credit card issuers have focused on providing reliable experiences via their mobile app or websites so customers don't have to call customer service or visit a branch, Gelles said. But as laggards have improved their execution of these basics, the digital experience offered by financial institutions is starting to look alike. 'No one's really getting worse, but the ones at the bottom are getting better, and that's creating a kind of situation where we have a lot of the apps and websites starting to be very similar,' Gelles said. The modular study — which looked at satisfaction with U.S. banking mobile apps, online banking websites, credit card mobile apps and credit card websites — found that a few banks performed slightly better than the rest. Bank of America ranked the highest for satisfaction with its banking mobile app among national banks, Capital One took the top spot in online banking satisfaction among national banks, and American Express came in No. 1 in credit card mobile app satisfaction and online credit card satisfaction. The best performers made navigation intuitive, embedded strong security features, and made it easy to search and dispute transactions, Gelles said. 'They all tend to be very good with security. So that's not just about allowing the customer to easily modify their security settings, but also customers trust that they're actually being secure with that information, and that probably stems from better communication of the security features,' Gelles said. A previous pain point was multifactor authentication, but that has since improved, Gelles said. 'We're now seeing customers are actually willing to kind of trade some added friction if they're going to get better security.' Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
